Parents of Greene County students will hear less frequently from the school district about cases of Covid-19 following a discussion at the Greene County Schools board of education meeting Sept. 15.
Superintendent Tim Christensen reported that since the start of the school year, 49 students (4 percent) and 20 staff (10 percent) have reported having Covid-19. Staffing has been more of an issue than student absenteeism, he said.
The “Return to Learn Plan” approved by the board in August included the superintendent providing daily updates about whether there were Covid cases in each building. “Not all comments about those have been positive,” Christensen said, and asked for board input.
He has sent daily messages even when there were no cases to report.
Board member Catherine Wilson suggested that since the district is no longer quarantining students and isn’t doing contact tracing, the daily information may not be needed.
Board president, retired physician Steve Karber, said parents of children with special health concerns may want information about Covid activity in a school building so they can make better decisions about sending their children to school.
The board amended the “Return to Learn Plan” to notify parents on a weekly basis rather than a daily basis.
Christensen also told the board that with a temporary injunction on the state law prohibiting school boards from issuing a mask mandate, some large districts have put mask mandates in place. Christensen did not suggest a mask mandate be issued, but that the administration and board continue to monitor the situation.
The board approved increases in pay for nutrition employees and substitute teachers after discussing it at the work session prior to the meeting. “None of this conversation to me is a good conversation as you look at what’s going on in the world today in terms of what people want to be paid, what minimum wage is, what funding we’re getting,” Christensen said.
He said hiring substitute teachers is a “huge challenge” and suggested increasing the daily pay from $120 to $135. He did not provide pay rates for nearby districts. The number of substitute teachers is small enough that Christensen said the district could get to a point when school needed to be closed “a day here or there” when no one can be found to cover classes.
Hourly wages for other substitute staff were also increased, with the increases retroactive to the beginning of the school year. Increases are as follows: substitute associates from $9 to $10; substitute teachers working as sub associates from $11 to $12; substitute custodians from $11 to $12; summer part-time custodian from $12 to $13; substitute cooks from $9 to $11; and substitute nurses from $23 to $25.
Those wages all come from the district’s general fund.
The board also increased wages for nutrition employees. Those wages are paid from revenues within the program, not from the general fund. The starting hourly wage for nutrition employees was increased from $10 to $11.20. The rate for substitute cooks was increased from $9 to $11. Also, the hourly wage of current staff making $12.65 or less was increased 10 percent. (All nutrition staff received a 3.5 percent increase on the contracts issued last March for the current school year).
The board set the Oct. 20 meeting at 6:30 pm as the time for a public hearing to allow moving $75,000 in Home School Assistance Program funds unused during the 2019-20 school year into the district’s Flexibility fund. The money will be spent on preschool and Title I reading.
The board approved the second reading of new board policies:
New Board Policy 401.14 – Employee Expression – allows for disciplinary action up to and including termination when an employee, speaking as an individual on a matter of public concerns, causes an adverse impact on district operations and/or “negatively impacts an employee’s ability to perform their job for the district.”
BP 401.14 also states “Employees who use social media platforms are encouraged to remember that the school community may not be able to separate employees as private citizens from their role within the district. Employee expression on social media platforms that interferes with the district’s operations or prevents the district from functioning efficiently and effectively may be subject to discipline up to and including termination.”
Board Policy 502.3R1 defines student expression in school publications and bans expression that is obscene, libelous, or slanderous; or encourages students to commit unlawful acts, to violate lawful school regulations; to cause disruption of the orderly and efficient operation of the school or school activity, to disrupt or interfere with the education program, to interrupt the maintenance of a disciplined atmosphere, or to infringe on the rights of others.
Board Policies 804.6 and 804.6R1 deal with the use of recording devices on school district property. Included is the use of recording devices installed to monitor and maintain a safe environment.
The board approved out-of-state trips for FFA to attend the National FFA convention in Indianapolis Oct. 27-30; and for the choir to travel to Kansas City, MO, for the Worlds of Fun Festival of Choirs May 4, 2022.
The board approved fundraisers as follows: Ram Relay sponsorships to benefit the boys/girls track and field program; selling of Scratch Cupcakes to benefit the track and field programs; selling earbuds for student use to benefit the IJAG program; a mattress sale to benefit the choir trip to Kansas City; and a yet-to-be-determined fundraiser to benefit the family of high school freshman Braeden Turner, who was seriously injured in a moped accident Sept. 10.
The board set goals for the 2021-22 school year as follows:
Prioritize the physical, mental and emotional health and safety of all staff and students.
- Maintain a rolling 3-5 year facilities plan.
- Effectively interact and communicate with students, staff, parents and public.
- Support the District Career Guidance Plan – 100 percent graduation rate, using IJAG and Career Academy to help reach this goal.
- Maintain $1M in unspent balance authority (The district finished the 2020-21 school year with a $1.3 million unspent balance authority.)
- Create an environment that encourages student enrollment and attracts/retains quality staff, including recruitment of students from other districts to the Greene County Career Academy.
- Monitor curriculum to ensure balance and accuracy.
